Milk-bottle holder.



PA-TENTED OCT. 25, 1904 A. E. BENNETT.

MILK BOTTLE HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED P314, 1904.

NO MODEL.

i NITED TATES Patented October 25, 1904.

ARTHUR E. BENNETT, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

MILK-BOTTLE HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 773,366, dated October25, 1904.

Application filed February 4, 190 Serial No. 191,923. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, ARTHUR E. BENNETT, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Buffalo,in the county of Erie and State of New York,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Milk-Bottle Holders, ofwhich thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates more particularly to a locking holder or rackintended to be located in a convenient position outside of the house toreceive and retain a milk bottle or bottles to prevent the same frombeing stolen or removed by any but an authorized person having a properkey or device for unlocking the holder.

The object of the invention is to provide a locking bottle holder orrack of desirable, simple, and inexpensive construction which willsecurely hold the bottle or bottles and will readily release the samewhen unlocked and which, while providing a protecting-cover over themouths of the bottles to prevent water, dirt, and the like from gettinginto the bottles, will not interfere with the ready re moval of thebottles in cold weather when the milk freezes and forms ice plugs whichforce out the paper-disk closures and protrude from the mouths of thebottles.

1n the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation, partly in.section, of a bottle holder or rack embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is aplan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a plan View, partly in section, of thestationary bracketor shelf. Fig. 4 is a vertical section in line 4: 4,Fig. 2, and showing the released position of the retaining-bar and coverby dotted lines. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional elevation in line 5 5,Fig. 3, showing the springclip. Fig. 6 is a plan View, partly brokenaway, of a bottle-holder of slightly-different construction.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.

Referring particularly to Figs. 1 to 5, A represents a stationarybracket or shelf which is secured on the side of the house, door, orother suitable support and is provided at its front side with open sidedpockets or recesses B to receive the necks of the milk-bottles. Thebracket shown has three pockets;

but one, two, or more can be used. The bracket or shelf may be made ofany suitable material, such as metal or wood, metal being preferred, andmay be made in various ways. For instance, the shelf may be made in asingle casting, either of solid form or the skeleton form shown in thedrawings, or from sheet metal stamped into form, or from wire bent intoform. The holder illustrated is designed especially for attachment tothe clapboards of the house and is provided at its rear edge withupwardly-extending ears or lugs 0, adapted to be inserted under thelower edge of a clapboard, and depending lugs or ears 0, which bearagainst the next lower clapboard and have notches or holes through whichfastening-screws are driven into the clapboard. The front portions ofthe pockets or recesses for the bottles are just wide enough to freelyadmit the necks of the bottles, and the rear portions thereof are ofsegmental circular form to embrace and fit the necks of the bottles andpreferably have beveled upper edges 0 forming seats into which the lipsof the bottles sink or drop when the bottles are placed in the pockets.As the beveled seats of the pockets are not continued to the front edgeof the bracket, they afford shoulders to prevent the bottles fromaccidentally slipping or working out of the pockets.

D represents a movable retaining bar or piece which in its closedposition (shown in in Figs. 1, 2, and 4) extends in front of the necksof the bottles, closing the open sides of the bottle pockets orrecesses, thus preventing the removal of the bottles. The retaining-barmay be movably connected to the bracket in various ways, enabling it tobe moved to and from its retaining position. In the construction shown,the retaining-bar is provided at its opposite ends withrearwardlyprojecting arms (Z, connected by a rod CZ, parallel with theretaining-bar and having projecting ends which enter bearing holes inlugs or ears 6?, rising from the opposite ends of the bracket.

E represents a spring for moving the retaining-bar to its releasedposition. The spring is preferably coiled about the hingerod (7, arm ofthe retaining-bar and the other end bearing on or secured to the rearportion of the bracket. \Yhen the retaining-bar is unlocked, the springswings it upwardly and rearwardly from in front of the bottles to freethe same.

The retainingbar is locked in closed position by any suitable form oflock or securing device, which can be operated to release the bar onlyby the proper person or persons. A

spring-lock 1* is shown secured to the front portion of the bracket, andthe retaining-bar is provided with a lug or hook f, Fig. 1, which entersthe lock and is engaged by the lock bolt or device. A spring-lock ispreferred, for the bottles can then be placed in the holder and theretaining-bar locked without the use of a key.

Covers or caps (i are provided for the bot tles in the holder. Separatecovers arranged over the several bottle-pockets may be employed, or asingle continuous cover extending over and protecting all of the bottlesin theholder. The covers illustrated are of hollow dome shape and aresecured at their lower edges by soldering, crimping, or otherwise tosupporting-rings g, which are sol dered or secured in any suitable wayat their rear portions to the hinge-rod d and at their front portions tothe retaining-bar by spacing and supporting legs or pieces The coversare thus carried by and movable with the retaining-bar toward and fromthe mouths of the bottles. These covers protect the bottles, preventingwater, dirt, or other foreign matter from entering the same. It is quitecommon in cold weather for the milk to freeze, forming ice plugs, whichexpand in the necks of the bottles and protrude from the mouths, forcingout of place and carrying with them the paper-disk closures commonlyused to close the bottles. The covers being hollow and spaced above themouths of the bottles permit this expansion and protrusion of the iceplugs. hen the retaining-bar is unlocked and raised, the covers aremoved with it away from the bottles and in the case of the formation ofthe ice plugs do not in any wise interfere with the removal of thebottles from the holder. Instead of securing the covers to theretaining-bar to move with it toward and from the bottles the coverscould be stationarily mounted, in which case when the retaining-bar ismoved to release the bottles they can be slipped forwardly out of thepockets from beneath the covers.

H represents aspring clip or device for holding a bill, note, or thelike. The clip (see Fig. 5) consists of a spring-Wire having a hook /Lat its upper end, which is engaged in a hole h in one of theupwardly-projecting attaching-lugs of the bracket before the latter issecured in place on its support. The

with one end secured to the adjacent l shank of the clip extendsdownwardly in a groove in the rear side of the attaching-lug andprojects below the latter, bearing yieldingly against the support. Thelower end of the clip is turned up, providing a rounded end, whichpermits the bill, note, or the like to be readily inserted between theclip and the support, where it is held by the pressure of thespring-clip against .it.

The construction shown in Fig. 6 is similar to that above described,except that instead of the straight hinge-rod for the retaining-bar andthe separate rings for the covers or caps a wire bar I is employed,which is bentin the form shown in said figure to provide segmentalcircular portionst' for the attachment of the covers or caps, endportions 6 to engage in the hinge-lugs, and portions 17, connecting thesupporting-rings, for the covers or caps. This cover-support is employedin connection with a bracket similar to that before described; but itwill be understood that the bracket, as well as the cover-support, couldalso be made of wire bent into suitable form.

What 1 claim as my invention is 1. A bottle-holder comprising a brackethaving an open-sided pocket to receive the neck of the bottle, aprotecting-cover for the bottle, a retaining-bar hinged to said bracketand movable to and from a retaining position in front of the bottles,and means for locking said retaining-bar in closed position,substantially as set forth.

2. In a bottle-holder, the combination of a bracket provided with anopen-sided pocket to receive the bottle, said pocket having a beveledupper edge to receive the lip of the bottle and prevent the escape ofthe same from the pocket, a movable retaining-bar which in one positioncloses the open side of the bottlepocket, and in another position opensthe same to free the bottle, and. means for locking said retaining-barin closed position, substantially as set forth.

3. In a bottle-holder, the combination of a bracket provided with anopen-sided pocket to receive the neck of the bottle, a cover arrangedover said pocket, a retaining-bar movably connected to said bracket andwhich in one position closes the open side of said pocket, and a lockfor holding said retaining-bar in closed position, substantially as setforth.

a. in a bottle-holder, the combination of a bracket provided with anopen-sided pocket to receive the bottle, a retaining-bar hinged to saidshelf or rack and which in one position closes the bottle-pocket, acover secured to said retaining-bar and arranged over the bottle-pocketin the closed position of the retaming-bar, and a lock for holding theretain ing-bar in a closed position, substantially as set forth.

5. in a bottle-holder, the combination of a bracket provided with apocket for the bottle, upwardly-projeeting lugs adapted to en- WVitnessmy hand this 30th day of January, gage beneath'a clapboard,downwardly-pro- 1904. jeeting' lugs provided With holes for fasteningdevices, a retaining-bar for holding the 5 bottle in the pocket, and alock for securing l/Vitnesses:

ARTHUR E. BENNETT.

the retaining-barina closed position, substan- EDWARD C. HARD, tially asset forth. 0. M. BENTLEY.

